The Qualities of Tony Stark
by wolfe13
Summary: We all know Tony is a lot of things. Just a bunch of short stories revolving around the many things Tony is. I'm still writing even though it's listed as complete. Rated T due to some of the stories.
1. Loyal

_This is an idea I got looking through my student planner. For every week, there is a word a definition (words like confidence, self image, etc.) To me, they sounded like the qualities of great hero! So these stories will be centered around words I think describe Tony Stark! I was reading some awesome Avengers stories, mainly stories written by the amazing Red Tigress (their writing is beyond amazing. Look them up.) Oh one more thing. I'm going to mark this story as complete because technically one of them is done. So i'll just keep updating and stuff._

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**LOYAL**

**faithful to any leader, party, or cause, or to any person or thing conceived as deserving fidelity: a loyal friend.**

"If I had stayed, Widow could have died!" Tony Stark yelled as the team returned to the mansion. The team had suffered a horrible rescue mission, resulting in multiple injuries and high tension.

"If you had stayed, we could have more time to save the scientists and workers! If you had listened to orders like I said, none of this would have happened!" Steve Rogers snapped back. Steve had finally had enough of the billionaire, snapping just after Tony had decided to disobey all orders and take matters into his own hands.

The mission had been very straight forward and to the point. There was a science facility on fire, and the local police were unable to handle it. All the Avengers had to do was go in there and save the trapped scientists. Unfortunately, nothing was ever that simple when it came to the Avengers. Cap had made a well thought plan: divide the vast area into section each member was responsible for. It had started routine, but it always does. As the inferno spread, the team had become more desperate as they tried to find the unknown amount of people lost in the blazing structure. The situation was still under control (mostly) until a huge section of Black Widow's building crashed to the ground. Contact was lost, and the minds of every teammate jumped to the worst conclusion. Tony, who had the section closest to Widow's, had immediately begun trying to get to her. Ignoring Cap's orders to stay and keep looking for trapped workers. When he had found her, Natasha happened to be perfectly fine. Angry that Tony had jeopardized the mission, but okay. That's when everything went downhill. With a sudden _Whoosh! _the building shuddered, and began to collapse in on itself.

"Get out of the building!" Cap had yelled over the intercom. Tony and Natasha had tried to make it out, but Tony's area had completely crumbled, trapping them. If he had been there, Iron Man could have stopped the crumbling. But he wasn't. Captain America had to reenter the fire and dig them out, earning Steve a couple burns and cuts.

Later, the team learned the facility had began it's collapse in Tony's section. If he hadn't left, the collapse could have been avoided. Let's just say, the news didn't go over well with the burned and smoke filled team. Now they were returning home, and Steve and Tony were having one of there "squabbles".

"So you would have me leave a teammate behind if a civilian was involved? One of your own?" Tony demanded, jabbing a finger at Steve's chest.

"That's our job! Protect the innocent no matter what! We all know that! For once in your life, could you not stop being so self obsessed and listen to an order?" Steve snapped coldly. The instant Steve said it, he knew he had crossed a line. Tony's face crumbled for just second, hurt evident in his eyes. But it was short lived. Tony turned away from them all, glaring at the wall.

"Everyone just calm down. Let's all take a break before something is said that will be regretted," Bruce Banner said, stepping forward. Bruce had no memory of what had happened in the building (being Hulk and all) but he gathered it hadn't gone well. Now, Bruce thought, everyone needed to take a breather.

"Bruce is correct, my friends. We cannot let ourselves be divided," Thor added, looking at the two angry men. Steve and Tony glared at each other for a few more seconds, then Tony stormed off without a word. The team watched him go silently.

"Well as fun as this was, I think I'm going to go wash the ash out of my hair," Clint Barton said, wincing at his sore muscles. The other murmured agreements, disappearing into the mansion.

Several hours later found Steve sitting alone in his room. He was staring at one of the few pictures that had been found from his old life. It was a good one though; it showed him (as Captain America) and Bucky standing together, smiling at the camera. A knock on his door roused him from his memories.

"Come in," Steve called. He wasn't surprised to see Clint walk in. The archer was quiet for a moment.

"I think you should go talk to Tony," Clint stated. Steve looked away.

"I can't think of a reason why he would want to see me," Steve responded quietly. He couldn't bring himself to look at the archer. Steve knew he'd messed up, and he knew he had hurt Tony. Clint shrugged, smirking slightly.

"Oh, there's no doubt about that. But you should still go talk to him. He's been moping around his lab for hours." It was true. Tony had refused to see anyone, locking them all out.

"What do you want me to say? Sorry?" Steve asked, not looking at Clint. The man shrugged.

"Whatever you think needs to be said." With that, Clint turned and walked out. Steve sighed, looking back down at the old picture. Thinking over the events of the mission, Steve began to slowly see what Tony was thinking. Steve knew that Tony was annoying, headstrong, even arrogant at times. But he was also incredibly loyal. Tony shouldn't be punished for that. Steve had seen first hand how far a little loyalty can go. After another moment, Steve stood and headed off to Tony's lab.

Tony sat, hunched over, repairing his suit. What else was there to do? Tony hadn't had time to start any new projects (with all the Avenger stuff), so all he had to work on was the dents in his red and yellow armor. Truth be told, Tony could have been done an hour or so ago, but he had purposefully dragged his feet. Tony didn't want to go back and face his team. Especially Steve. The man's words had hurt much more than Tony cared to admit.

'_Sir. Mr. Rogers is requesting I let him in. Shall I?' _Jarvis' automated voice rang through the lab. Tony's head shot up. He'd been expecting a talk from Clint or maybe Bruce, but from Steve? No way. Tony deliberated for a couple seconds then sighed.

"Yeah Jarvis. Let him in," Tony mumbled, hunching over again. Tony could hear the hiss of the door opening behind him and footsteps approaching him.

"Tony..." Steve didn't know where to begin. He had spent enough time with Tony to read his body language. His hunched form and slow moving hands were obvious signs of Tony's unhappiness.

"Oh hey Steve. Look I'm kind of busy right now, so will you just leave the lecture in writing? Thanks. Goodbye." Tony said all of this without looking up from his work. He tried to sound snarky and cocky, to hide the hurt. Besides, Steve already thought Tony was vain anyway. What did it matter? Right?

"Tony please look at me," Steve said, trying to sound gentle. The young genius froze and his shoulders sagged. He slowly turned around, staring at the ground at Steve's feet. The recently-unfrozen-hero took a step closer to Tony, looking the talented man over. Tony continued to look deliberatly dow as Steve tried to think of good way to say what he wanted. "Tony, I what happened in the building... And what I said, I was-" Tony cut Steve off, stepping away into his desk.

"Steve look it doesn't matter. It's fine," Tony croaked, looking for an escape.

"No it wasn't. Tony, you're a great man, better

then most people I've ever met," Steve pressed on. There were some things that needed to be said, and this was the time. "Calling you self obsessed was wrong. I know why you had to save Widow. It's because you're loyal."

"Loyal? Like a dog?" It was a lame attempt at a joke, but Steve smiled anyway. That was the Tony he knew.

"A little like that I suppose. You couldn't stand the thought of leaving a team member, could you?"

"... No I guess not," Tony agreed. His voice was quiet, but there was a general lighthearted tone to it. Steve knew he was forgiven and all was how it should be.

"Come on. I'm hungry and your lab stinks," Steve joked, wrinkling his nose. Tony stood, his entire being radiating indignation.

"My lab does _not _smell."

"Whatever you say."

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_The end! Please comment and stuff!_

_~Wolfe13_


	2. Busy

_Hey. So I actually don't have much to say here… The only real thing I wanted to tell you guys was if you ever think of a adjective and a story idea you think would be good, just comment about it or you can private message me! Even if you don't have a story idea, I'd be happy to look into using the adjective. I'm always looking for new ones._

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**BUSY**

**Actively and attentively engaged in work or a pastime**

Contrary to what seemed to be popular belief, being a millionaire, huge business owner, superhero, and boyfriend was not all fun and games. In fact, to Tony it seemed to be very, _very _irritating. Oh, there were defiently perks: having lots of money, kicking villian butt in a badass armor, dating a very beautiful Pepper. But mix them all together and it created a very full schedule. For someone like Tony, that was not very easy. Usually he could manage, but there were those days that seemed the world wanted him to miss everything he had planned. Poor Tony had no way of knowing it was going to be one of those days.

"So Tony, what are you going to remember today?" Pepper Potts asked her boyfriend as that sat together drinking their morning coffee.

"I have a buisness meeting at 9:50, a press conference at 1:15, and a date with a very attractive woman at 6:30," Tony Stark responded as he sipped his suger packed coffee. "Just so we're on the same page, by the way, I don't think I should have to go to that meeting. I own the company. Can't I just cancel the meeting and be done with it?"

"For the last time, no you can't," Pepper told Tony smiling at him. Tony frowned at her.

"See, I think I can. Actually, it'd be incredibly easy. All I have to do is tell Jarvis to send a email out to all the board. They can't disagree," Tony pointed out. He couldn't help but look at Pepper, playfully challenging her to tell him why that wouldn't work.

"But if you did that, I'd feel less inclined to do you any favors tonight," Pepper replied, returning the challenge. She watched, satisfied, as Tony digested her words.

"Humph. Well played Miss Potts. Well played," Tony grumbled, drinking more coffee. Pepper took a sip of her coffee too, celebrating another win against her handsome boyfriend.

_2 hours later_

Tony sat, bored out of his brilliant mind, in the long and beige room used for meetings. Repainting the room a different (perhaps a bright scarlet) was always on his to-do list, but never seemed to get done. Regardless, Tony was there listening to the board members talk about stocks this, and investments that. Tony caught bits and pieces of the converstation.

"New products... Software... Taxes are going... Mr. Stark... Mr. Stark... Mr. Stark!" Tony jerked in surprise. All eyes were on him, and Tony could not figure out why.

"W-what?" Tony asked. Just then, his question was answered. A loud beep echoed from Tony's pocket. He reached down and pulled out the beeping's orgin. His Avenger's ID card. "One sec, everyone." Tony stood up walked into the hall. "This is Iron Man."

"Tony. It's Steve. We need you down in town right away," Steve told him.

"Aw Steve I'm flattered you guys miss me so much, but I'm in a meeting," Tony said, trying to sound like the meeting was actually intresting.

"Iron Man, we-" His words were cut off be a crash and yelp of pain.

"Steve? Steve! Are you okay? Steve!" Tony yelled frantically.

"Ow... I'm ok. But we really need you here," Steve responded after a moment of tormenting silence.

"I'll be there faster then possibe," Tony promised, all the joking manner leaving his tone. Tony knew the Avengers could usually take care of themselves without too much damage. But, when someone started to actually _hurting _his team... Let's just say no one injures them without answering to Tony. No one. "Jarvis please alert the board something important requires my attention," Tony instructed the automated butler, "and ready my armor.

_30 minutes later_

Downtown Manhattan was not as destroyed as Tony had expected. In fact, the chaos was really only in one section. As Iron Man flew towards the battle, he took in what was currently happeing. He couldn't yet see the enemy, but he could see Captan America throwing his shield at something, Hawkeye (on a rooftop) just releashing an arrow, Thor shooting lightning, and Hulk chucking a boulder. Tony could also see that they all were attacking the same place.

"Iron Man to team. What are we facing?"

"It's about time," Tony could hear Clint mutter. Tony choose to ignore that comment.

"It seems to some kind of really big snake that spits poison. Maybe acid," Cap's voice responded over the intercom. "...And Tony? Thanks for coming." Tony grinned at that statement.

Tony landed a couple feet away from Steve. It was the first time he got a good look at the creature. It had a long ash colored body, stubby arms, steel like scales, and a tail made for pummeling. Also, it's mouth was filled with barbed fangs that dripped with a clear and gooey substance.

"Jarvis, begin pre-analaysis of that poison," Tony instructed. He would need a sample for all the data, but he liked to get a head start. "Anything I should know before fighting this thing?" Tony asked, glancing at Steve. The patriotic hero regarded him worridely.

"Yeah. Don't get bit, hit, or constricted."

"Useful," Tony muttered, turning to face the snake. It looked back him with almost contempt. _This is how you plan to beat me?_ It's eyes seemed to ask. _With another tiny human in a bright red suit? _"Whatever, I have a meeting to get back to." Tony raised his hand, and blasted the creature square in the face. It's grey body flew back into the rubble, writhing furiously. Tony aimed for another blast, but it righted itself and shot left just as the repulsor rang through the city. The creature shot like confetti from a popper at Tony, using it's head as a titanium battering ram. The invincible Iron Man flew like a rag doll across the street into _Tio's African Flavors. _Aching already, Tony stood up.

"Oh, and it's fast," Steve called to Tony. Before Tony could even think of a good swear word to use on Steve, he was bombarded by a flash of grey. The snake had launched at him, and now was wrapping itself around Tony's torso, squeezing with a crushing force. Red lights flashed across Tony's viewing screen, Jarvis' voice reporting to him in a calm voice all the catostrophic faliures the armor was undergoing. The haze of pain that had been floating in Tony's mind since the first crash was now overpowering. No coherent though passed through his mind. Vaguely, he though he heard his teamates attempting to pry the monster from him. While thought eluded him, he found he could still feel. Feel the jerk as Steve's shield crashed into the slythering fiend. Feel the tiny jarring motions as Black Widow shot the beast with her guns. Feel himself stagger as Clint's arrow exploded. Lastly, he defienetly felt when the Hulk grabbed the snake in one hand and Tony in the other and attempted to rip them apart like one opened a bag of chips. But never did the feeling of force crushing his insides leave. But even that was lost in the next feeling that entered Tony's mind.

Fire. Blinding, white hot. Fire so intense that Tony couldn't understand why his arm hadn't shriveled and fallen off yet. Somehow, the creature had sunk those damn fangs into Tony's arm, through his armor. Whatever the poison was, it was effective.

"J-Jarvis! All power to chest beam!" Tony ground out as desperation cracked his voice.

_Yes sir. _The Al responded.

"Fire!" The blast was so powerful it cleaved the beast in two. The halves twisted despertly on the ground for a few seconds before slowing to a stop. Tony groaned in relief and sunk to the ground. His arm had felt better the second the fangs exited his flesh. Tony's face plate raised up so he could see the worried faces of his battered team.

"Tony, are you okay? Do you need to go to a hospital?" Tony smiled weakly.

"I think I need a nice beer."

_1 hour later_

According to Jarvis, the poison was not lethel, and only effected the body as long as it was continously pumped into the blood. Tony was still tried (exhausted), weak (probably couldn't lift a cat), and sore (every muscle hurt to move) but he refused to go home and rest.

"I have a press conference at 1:15," the millionare insisted. Everyone was unhappy with the idea withTony leaving before he was properly examined, but Tony wouldn't hear it. He had already skipped out on the meeting, and dreaded what would happen if he missed the press conference too. Leaving the scene, Tony flew off towards Stark Tower.

_15 minutes later_

As Tony landed on the roof he could already see the angry form of Pepper waiting for him.

"Are you crazy? You can't just leave a meeting without telling anyone! This was a very important meeting and now I have to reschedule it!" Pepper fumed. She had more to say when she noticed Tony wasn't fighting back. He was just standing, staring blankly at the wall. "Tony?" Pepper asked, quieter. She placed a hand on his good arm and said, "Tony are you okay?" Tony blinked at her.

"Huh? Oh... I'm okay. J...just tired," Tony promised Pepper, trying to focus his spinning eyesight. Pepper looked unconvinced. She probably would have said more, but Jarvis cut her off.

_Sir, most of the press is here. They are waiting for you in conference hall 8. _Tony forced a nod, the simple action feeling like someone had pistol whipped him. Luckily, Tony had always been good at hiding pain.

Throughout the conference, Tony was proud to say he only needed to steady himself 19 times. One or two of those times his security had to discreetly grip Tony's arm to keep him from collapsing. But still.

_2 hours later_

Finally, _finally, _they were done. The reporters nodded their goodbyes and thanked him. Tony smiled and waved, perfectly normal. But once the last one had leaved, he collaspsed into a chair. Every noise and viberation was just a dull buzzing in his head. After a minute or so, Tony felt a gentle hand touch his cheek.

"Tony? Can you hear me?" Who was that? Tony tried to focus.

"Pepperr...? Whaa...? Whaz up-p," Tony slurred out. His girlfriend looked him over worriedly.

"You look awful. Were going to a hospital right now," Pepper commanded.

"N...no. I'm fine," Tony wheezed. He began to rise, leaning against the chair for support. Using the chair would have worked on a normal, sturdy chair. But the chairs for the reporters had been simple metal folding chairs. The cheap frame didn't hold Tony up. The chair and Tony toppled sideways into the chair next to it. Tony hit the second chair's metal seat head first. With a last grunt, Tony tumbled off the pile of chairs to the ground, unmoving.

_? hours later_

"Tony can you hear me?" Tony tried to block out the irratating voice that penattrated through to dark. "Tony? Can you open your eyes? I need you to try," the voice continued. The voice sounded familiar and sweet. It was a voice Tony would cross any world to hear. With an amazing effort, Tony dragged his eye lids upward. Pepper's relieved face filled his swimming vision.

"Hey... Pep..." Tony whispered, his voice much too quiet. As his sight focused and cleared, Tony saw tears of happiness in her eyes. He raised his good hand (the one not covered by a bandage) up to touch Pepper's hair.

"God Tony. Taking a quick break sometimes wont kill you, you know," a different voice said from behind Pepper. Tony looked and saw his team grinning at him. Well Clint, who had just spoken, was more smirking and Natasha looked indifferent, but Steve and Bruce were smiling.

"Clint's right. There's no need to be running yourself into the ground all the time," Steve told him. Tony snorted.

"In my defense, my day wasn't too bad until that stupid snake thing showed up."

"Tony, I'm serious. None of us want, or expect, you to kill yourself. You don't have unlimited strength. You're human," Steve told him. Tony was quiet for a moment, watching as the rest of the Avengers nodded in agreement. Tony felt his face light up.

"Thanks guys. I just don't want to mess everything up." Unsuprisingly, it was Clint who decided to make a joke.

"Well Tony, we all expect you to mess up, so no worries." Tony glowered at the archer.

"I feel so loved."


	3. Lonely

_FIRST AND FOREMOST, THIS CHAPTER IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT FROM MY OTHERS. I WANTED TO EXPIRMENT WRITING LIKE THIS. I MOST LIKELY WONT HAVE ANOTHER CHAPTER LIKE THIS. (You'll understand after reading the chapter)_

_This story is dedicated to CiCi the Awesome, who requested this word. Also, it was dying to by written. I hope you guys like it! ^_^ Oh, and just a sorta warning, this story can be viewed as Tony/Bruce friendship, or pre-slash. Up to you. If you have something against male slash, well to bad for you. What people do with their love lives is not your call, so get over it. I mean, you don't have to read it._

_Also, Tony's dream is kinda intense because I refused to censor it. It's not inappropriate so much… ah whatever. Don't read if you don't want. It's the really long two paragraphs in italics. Can't miss it._

_Once again I request anyone to leave an adjective suggestion. I always need one. Seriously, coming up with an adjective alone takes forever. Dont be shy. Anthing will be appreciated. I beg you._

_Also, i started watching Doctor Who not too long ago, so there will probably be a bunch of Doctor Who references in my authors notes. You have been warned_

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**LONELY**

**Affected with, characterized by, or causing a depressing feeling of being alone; lonesome.**

"Tony, are you _sure _you don't want to come along with one of us?" Bruce asked for the tenth time. Tony gave a long, exasperated sigh.

"Yes, I'm sure! Believe it or not, I actually lived on my own before all of you invaded my home," Tony told his science-bro, also for the tenth time. This conversation had been going on for almost two days now. To be specific, it had all begun when the fact that every Avenger (besides Tony) and Pepper would all be away the same week had come to everyone's attention. Clint and Natasha would be off doing... Well no one was sure, or wanted to know. Thor was still in Asgard. Pepper was off to a family reunion. Steve was taking a trip aroundAmerica(funded by Tony, of course) to see how much had changed. Lastly, Bruce had been invited to the Australian outback to investigate a possible outbreak of gamma radiation. Tony would be all alone for seven whole days.

"I know, but there's no reason for you to be alone. Besides, you'd have lots of fun if you came along," Bruce pointed out.

"Bruce, I don't need a babysitter. Besides, I'd rather avoid radiation, and leave the whole green-rage-monster thing to you. Now, if you don't get your patronizing butt out of here, you'll miss your flight, and I'm not paying for another ticket," Tony threatened. Bruce gave Tony one more look, and then sighed.

"Fine, fine. I'm going. See you in seven days." With that, Tony was alone. Now that everyone was gone, Tony let his shoulders slump as he fell into the nearest chair. Tony was all too familiar with how his life would be for the next week.

For the first day, everything was just dandy. Tony occupied himself with almost 86 different projects, many cups of coffee, movies, and suit modifications.

The next day was a little harder, as sleep began to lure him towards his bed. But Tony knew what would happen if he dared to dream alone. So, Tony drank more coffee, caused some minor explosions, more coffee, and more work on his suit. The hours were worsened by the cold. Tony's lab was generally cool, but Tony had become accustomed to having Bruce in there, giving off warmth, life. Now the lab was cold again, dead. Tony was alone with only metal and a robotic voice with no feeling.

It wasn't till day three did anything really happen. Tony was on his 12th cup of coffee that day, but he could still feel sleep poking his mind.

"Damn..." Tony muttered, rubbing his eyes. Before the Avengers, Tony could go almost 9 days without sleep. But once Bruce had moved in, the stupid caring guy had made Tony sleep nearly every night. Now, his body actually _craved_ sleep, and Tony hated it. He couldn't sleep. He couldn't face the horrors alone. Not anymore...

_Sir, Mr. Banner is calling. _Jarvis' voice echoed emotionlessly through the lab. Tony blinked the bleariness away.

"Thanks, Jarvis." Tony picked up the phone, leaning against the wall.

"Hey Brucie. Miss me already?" Tony chirped, trying to sound bright and cheery. He was rewarded with a sigh from the other man.

"Hi Tony. How are you holding up?" How was he holding up? Tired. Afraid. Cold. Lonely.

"Great! I've gotten a thousand and one things done with you all out of my house," Tony joked. Bruce laughed quietly.

"Glad you miss us so much," Bruce replied lightly. "Nothing interesting has happened on my end. So far I've found no traces of radiation. But the idiots here refuse to give up the search." Tony forced a believable laugh. The pair talked for another thirty minutes (Tony was using every second to memorize Bruce's voice so he could listen to it in his head when he felt the chocking silence settle back in) until Bruce said, "Oh, sorry Tony. I've gotta go. Time for another test."

"No problem! I should get back to work anyway," Tony said out loud. Inside, though, he was screaming _don't hang up, don't hang up, don't hang up, don't hang-_

"Bye Tony. I'll call you again when I can," Bruce promised, and then the line went dead. _-up. _Tony finished silently in his head. As the phone toppled from his hands, Tony slowly lowered himself to the ground and moaned.

Tony wasn't sure how long he sat there. Minutes, hours, seconds... Not that it mattered. It must have been a while, though, because Jarvis actually had to check on him.

_Sir, are you alright? Shall I call Miss Potts? Or Mr. Banner? _The Al asked. Tony grunted, dragging himself to a standing position.

"No Jarvis, I'm... fine. Great even!" Tony faked another laugh, and then fell back against the wall. "You sure are messed up Stark...," he murmured to himself. "Faking emotion to a computer."

_Splash! T_o_ny's head was once again shoved into the frigid water. Everything burned: his oxygen deprived lungs, water filled nose, his eyes, the cuts lining his body, the slices on his face. With a jerk from the rough hands that restrained his desperate and childlike struggles dragged him from the water again. Not that there was much relief. He still hurt. Tony was in Hell again. What else could it be but Hell?_

_"Oh Stark… You thought you escaped? No… You are mine, all mine…" The demon of his life whispered in his ear. The Ten Rings leader, Tony's tormenter. Tony's pain was so great he couldn't even wonder how the horrible man suddenly knew English. He never did. Hands, not as rough as the ones holding him, grazed over his skin. The hands rubbed across his face and body, tracing over his waist and down farther. It was possessive, and completely awful. Against his will, Tony could feel an involuntary moan rise in his throat, which only worsened everything. "You let them _all _down Tony. They're all dead because of you." Tony wailed with despair as images flashed across his dream: Clint being brutally impaled with one of his own arrows while being once again controlled by Loki, Natasha being shot in the forehead by her own gun as her fiery hair was torn from her skull, Steve being frozen into solid ice and shattered by his own shield, Thor's body being crushed in on itself by his own hammer, Yinsen's body exploding in a bloody blast, Pepper's clothes being torn from her body so she could be abused by dirty men while she screamed with blood-chilling horror, Bruce being strapped to a lab table and cut open with long knives as he screeched with agony. Tony sobbed openly as the images played on repeat through his head like a broken DVD. Everyone he cared about destroyed in front of him. If was his fault too. All his fault! "Yes Tony, you did this. Why'd you do it, Tony? Tony? Tony!"_

Tony's eyes flew open as his name was shouted again. But this voice was different. It was full of concern and care. Tony's vision was suddenly filled with the worried face of none other than our dear friend Bruce Banner.

"Tony calm down! You're safe!" Bruce exclaimed, rubbing Tony's arm. Tony blinked up at his savior.

"B-Bruce...?" Tony groaned, trying to focus his eyes. Tony stared upwards at his savior for two more seconds, then fell back, limp with exhaustion.

~~~~~~######~~~~~######~~~~~~######~~~~~~~#######~~~~~######~~~~~~#####

Bruce had been ready to rip some heads off right before Jarvis had contacted him. Not Hulk-out ready, but head ripping? Totally fine. Not that anyone would miss these losers. As far as he could tell, they had no one but their mothers, and a couple of fish. Not even cool fish, like koi. Yeah, these guys all had minnows as pets. _Minnows. _Bruce would have to remember to never work with this group again.

Admittedly, it had been a slightly interesting trip. He had been able to study Australian plants and animals and see a wilder and free land. So that was an up side. He tried to look at the positives.

When Bruce had spoken with Tony, he had felt that something was wrong. Everything (laughter, jokes) had sounded forced and weak. Bruce had attempted to trick Tony into telling him his problems, but to no avail. Bruce had decided halfway through their conversation that pushing him may cause unnecessary stress, so he let Tony go. Bruce had been sure something would go wrong, and it was no surprise when his communicator started beeping. Bruce sighed and stepped to a more secluded area.

"Tony, is everything alright?"

_Actually sir, it is I, Jarvis. I am calling you to inform you that Mr. Stark has passed out in his lab and is unresponsive. _

"He what?"

_Yes. Miss Potts forced Mr. Stark to install me with the ability to call for help to the last of his friends to call if such a situation was to arise. I am programmed to now ask you to please come home and care for Mr. Stark._

"I- uh- ok Jarvis. I'm on my way. Keep me posted on any changes," Bruce instructed as he sprinted towards his jet.

The ride back toStarkMansionwas nerve wrecking and incredibly slow. Bruce was unsure how long it took, but simply labeled it as "way too long". He had jumped out of the jet and was running as fast as he could towards Tony's lab before the engines completely turned off.

"Jarvis, where is he?" Bruce yelped as he entered to the cold lab. Bruce scanned the area desperately.

_At the computer, sir._

The compu- oh! Tony was slouching in the chair, his face flat against the keyboard. Bruce assumed Tony hadn't picked the position because it looked very uncomfortable.

"Tony..." Bruce sighed as he trotted over to the prone genius. Gently, he pressed his fingers to Tony's neck. Just to make sure. Pleased that Tony was alive, Bruce scanned the lab. Farther investigation shed light on what had happened. Coffee cups were strewn across the tables, papers scattered on the floor. As far as Bruce could tell, Tony had basically run himself into the ground. As these thoughts floated through his head, a distressed cry echoed through the lab, followed by a thump. Bruce twisted around to find tat Tony had managed to fall out of his chair, but was still somehow asleep. An impressive feat. But as Bruce watched, Tony began to thrash on the floor. Along with the flailing limbs, Tony began to cry in anguish. Bruce rushed to his friend's side, wrapping Tony in his arms.

"Tony? Tony!" Bruce yelled. With a gasp, his friend's eyes snapped open. But they were glazed and still filled with terror and exhaustion. "Tony calm down! You're safe!" To make sure the scared man understood, Bruce rubbed his hand up and down Tony's arm. Bruce watched as the dazed eyes blinked at him.

"B-Bruce?" Tony's voice was too quiet and hurt, but it was good to hear. Another moment passed, then Tony's head flopped down as Tony's last reserves ran out.

"That's right Tony, go back to sleep," Bruce said as soothingly as possible. He quickly ran his fingers through Tony's hair (marveling at the softness) before coming up with a plan.

As far as Bruce could figure, Tony needed a long, undisturbed sleep. Where? His room of course. What was left was the simple problem of transportation. After a couple seconds of debate, Bruce settled on what was the simplest. As carefully as he could, Bruce picked Tony up, bridal style. It was weird, cradling his best friend, but Bruce pushed that thought away. His friend needed him. As soon as Tony was in his arms, the dark haired genius snuggled against Bruce, pressing his face into his chest.

Bruce carried Tony through the mansion until he reached the large oak door of Tony's room. Managing to the pull the door open without dropping Tony was an impressive feat in itself. Grunting with effort, Bruce carried his snoring friend to the large bed placed in the middle-back of the room. It looked clean, but unused. The mattress had no dent where a body would lay, the covers still looked straight and unwrinkled. The bed didn't even make a sound as Bruce deposited Tony onto the covers as gently as possible. Bruce carefully pulled the thick blanket around Tony. The sleeping man snuggled deep into the mound of covers and pillows, letting out a content sigh. Bruce smiled slightly, and turned to leave.

Something latched onto Bruce's arm. Admittedly, it was weak, but very persistent. Bruce turned slightly to find it was in fact Tony's hand gripping his forearm. Bruce's eyes followed the hand to arm to torso to head to eyes. Tony's eyes were open slightly, but stared up at Bruce with an unfair amount of begging and desperation.

"Don't go," Tony begged quietly, his voice cracking a bit. The pressure on Bruce's arm increased a little, and attempted to pull him back to the bed.

Bruce stood there, torn between his sense of duty to his friend, and the knowledge of how many problems this could cause. Bruce quickly weighed his options. On one hand, he was almost positive that Tony was only half-awake, caught in some dreamlike state. With this in mind, Bruce could infer that Tony would not remember this conversation. Because of _that,_ his friend could not be angry about Bruce refusing his request.

On the other hand, Tony was in a delicate mental state. Any upsetting events could break Tony completely, which would obviously cause an insane amount of problems.

Bruce let out a loud half-hearted exasperated sigh. He walked back to the bed and crawled under the covers, lying down on his back. Tony immediately pressed himself closer to the part-time rage-monster. Arms wrapped themselves around Bruce's chest as a head buried itself in his neck. Bruce slowly allowed his own arms to wrap around Tony and pull him closer. Soon, the two men were laying chest to chest, their arms around each other. Bruce tried to not think about many things: what would happen if any of the Avengers found them like this, is Tony woke up and assumed Bruce had taken advantage of his comatose state, or if he learned that he actually didn't mean that much to Tony and this was the last time he would get to hold his brilliant friend... Whoa. Where had that come from?

Bruce's eyes snapped open at the thought. Could... Could he really have feelings for Tony? No! No, that would be impossible. He and Tony were both straight! Tony had Pepper, and Bruce had loved Betty. But these feelings he was experiencing while holding Tony... What the heck else could they be?

Bruce sighed again, trying to keep quiet. There was no reason for dwelling on these thoughts right now. Now was about Tony, and keeping his friend healthy and happy. Pulling his fingers through Tony's dark locks, Bruce closed his eyes. There was no way to know what the next day would bring; no way to predict what monster (mental or physical) would be waiting to fight them. But one thing _was _certain. As long as Tony was there at his side, as a friend or as something more, Bruce would survive.

* * *

_I'm really excited because this is my first story that passed over 3,000 words. Technically,_ some_ of those words are in the authors note, but I DO NOT CARE! DON'T RUIN MY HAPPINESS! IF YOU DO I WILL SEND THE 11TH DOCTOR TO KILL YOU! ... Ok that wouldn't really work be cause the Doctor is all none killing, but... ok let me think... OK IF YOU RUIN MY HAPPINESS I'LL SEND THE JUDOON AFTER YOU! There, take that. I bet you are scared._

_Also, i'm serious when i say i want everyone to offer me new adjectives. these stories are not easy to come up with, which is why i take so long to update. Well, that and because I'm ADD. Do you know how hard it is to write with ADD? Pretty hard. Because my mind is constantly losing intrest and focus. So i do apologize for the gaps in my writings. I hope you all know it isn't personal._

_Well thanks for reading!_

_~wolfe13_


	4. Surprising

_Hey! Well its been quite some time, hasn't it? That's kinda my bad... But life got in the way again. Stupid life. Anyway, I forced myself to write this, and it only took me about a month. Yeah, updating is the bane of my existence. Part of the problem is that I don't really plan out what's going to happen in each update, so there's long delays between times I write because I'm trying to think up a plot. But here we are, finally._

_Enjoy! _

* * *

**SURPRISING**

**1. causing surprise, wonder, or astonishment**

**2. unexpected **

It was common logic to anyone that eccentric billionaire Tony Stark spent lots of time alone. Even if he was happily dating and had a house (mansion?) filled with heroes, he had always been portrayed as a kind of loner, a kind of man who liked his personal time. That portrayal was pretty accurate. Tony did happen to spend time in his workshop without company or social contact of any kind.

So no one worried when he vanished into his lair for days on end. Sometimes he would reappear with an amazing new modification. Other times he would only have a couple of explosion burns to display. Either way, alone time was normal. At first, the new residents of the mansion were concerned by the lack of social contact their teammate seemed to find normal. But Pepper, used to this behavior, quickly explained to the heroes that Tony didn't mind being alone. She also warned them not to be angry or insulted by Tony's solidarity. She had learned to never complain when Tony was missing for a week or so.

**But two and half weeks were really pushing it.**

"Tony! What on _earth_ are doing in there?!" Pepper screamed to him through the metal door. She had been yelling and pounding for almost twenty minutes now. The Avengers (aside from Tony of course) were all standing behind her, looking amused.

"He's so going to get it," Clint said, looking excited. He always enjoyed watching Tony get told off by his girlfriend. The genius always got this confused look, like he honestly didn't understand why he was in trouble.

"I'll be out in a second, Pepper!" Tony called back. His voice was distant and distracted, muffled by the large door.

"That's what you said ten minutes ago!"

"I mean it this time!"

"You said that too!" There was a long silence that followed and Pepper huffed in frustration. She was usually calm and collected, but some things about Tony just drove her crazy. Just as she raised her hand to smack the door again, it opened with a _hiss. _

"Yeesss?" Tony asked her, leaning on the door frame. He was covered in black dust, hair in a disarray, white sleeveless shirt completely grey, loose pants covered in holes, and a pair of welding googles sitting lopsided on his forehead. Not an unusual look for Tony while he was in his lab.

"What the hell are you doing in there?!" Pepper demanded. Tony shrugged, glancing over his shoulder.

"Oh you know... This and that..." Tony said indifferently.

_"This _and _that?!" _she screeched, losing her temper. "You disappear in your damn lab for two and a half weeks, and you claim you're only working on _this and that?!" _Tony started, blinking.

"Yeah, so?" Tony asked her, challenging her.

"Out of my way," Pepper snapped.

"What?" Tony asked incredulously.

"Out. Of. My. Way," Pepper repeated venomously.

"Why? It's my lab!" Tony cried in disbelief.

"Let me see what you're doing in there this _instance!" _None of the Avengers looked amused now. They'd never seen Pepper meet her wits before now, and it was truly frightening.

"No," Tony said firmly. He stood right in the middle of the doorway, arms crossed.

"'No'? Fine. Have it your way. Sit alone and rot your lab if you want! See if I care!" With that, Pepper turned and started stomping down the hall.

"Pepper! Wait!" Tony complained. Pepper turned and glared at him. "I'm sorry, okay? I want to tell you, honest. But you have to be patient."

"I'm done waiting Tony." With that Pepper turned again and walked stiffly away. Tony watched her go, his eyes unreadable. Then, without another word, turned and returned to his lab. No one spoke for a moment.

"Well that was... fun?" Clint muttered.

"This is weird behavior for Tony," Natasha admitted. "I've never seen him not let Pepper into his lab. I wonder what he's really doing in there."

"Probably something stupid and dangerous," Steve sighed, running a hand through his hair. No one disagreed.

"We should try to do _something,_" Bruce pointed out. Steve nodded slowly.

"Bruce's right. We should all try to figure out what Tony is working on. Not at once, of course. Spread out each attempt," Steve decided.

"Sounds like a plan," Natasha said. The other Avengers grinned at their plan.

**~Natasha's attempt~**

Tony sat alone in his lab, typing line after line of code. He sorted through the various pictures and plans for his project. Tony had wanted to show Pepper what he was working on, wanted to prove to her he wasn't doing anything stupid. But that would ruin all the fun! Music blared from a paint splattered stereo in the corner of the room, but the sound didn't block out the loud knocking.

"Tony, open up." Natasha's distinct voice called from outside. Tony sighed loudly as he pressed a couple quick keys and the data disappeared from the screen. Tony dragged himself to the door and opened it.

"What?" Tony grumbled. He didn't bother to cover up the annoyance in his voice.

"Tell me what you are doing in there," ordered Natasha, not wasting time on pleasantries. Tony gave her an amused look.

"Why the sudden interest in my science life?" Tony inquired playfully, cocking his head to one side. Natasha didn't smile. In fact, her glinted even more dangerously.

"Tell me."

"No."

"Tell me."

"Nope."

"Tell me Stark or I'll make sure you die a painful death," Natasha growled. Tony's face became uncharacteristically solemn.

"Natasha I can't tell you what I'm working on. But I promise it's nothing bad, and it'll make Pepper happy. You'll just have to believe me." Natasha remained silent for a long time before sighing.

"Don't waste my trust, Stark."

**~Steve's attempt~**

The day after Natasha's visit, another knock echoed from the lab door. Tony looked up from the sparking piece of metal in his hands. He remained still for a moment and just listened. Another knock. Tony groaned loudly as he stood and gave the chair a moody kick. Didn't these people have anything better to do?

"Yes?" Tony said with mock politeness as the steel door _swished _to the side. Steve stood there, trying to look pleasant.

"Hi Tony," Steve said with a smile. Tony blinked at him a couple times.

"Uh, hey."

"How are you?"

"Fine."

"That's good."

"Yeah I guess."

"..."

"..."

"So Tony," Steve began. "You sure have been in that lab of yours for quite some time."

"I like being in my lab," Tony said simply.

"I can tell," Steve said easily.

"Cool," Tony responded. He internally rolled his eyes. How long could one conversation go in a circle?

"Mind if I come in?" Steve said, already taking a step forwards.

"Well I guess but I'm pretty busy and-"

"Thanks!" Steve said cheerfully as he pushed past Tony. The genius groaned as he followed the other hero. Steve made his way over to the work bench without hesitation. "What are you working on?" Steve asked, trying to sound only mildly interested. He reached to touch the metal heap, but Tony smacked his hand away.

"Just a small project." Tony eyed Steve's wandering hand warily. "And please don't touch anything," Tony added.

"What kind of project?" Steve wondered, ignoring Tony's request. The blond continued to examine the project with curiosity.

"A small one," Tony replied, not completely hiding the smugness in his voice. Steve ignored this too.

"Must be pretty important. You've devoted so much time to it."

"Some projects just take time. That doesn't make them important." Steve continued to look at the supposedly unimportant project before turning to Tony.

"You're not going to tell me anything, are you?"

"Not a chance, Capsicle," Tony responded brightly.

"Thought so," Steve muttered as he walked dejectedly from the lab. Tony watched him go, fighting off a laugh.

**~Clint's attempt~**

Tony didn't even look up when Jarvis' voice rang out saying _Sir, Mr. Barton is crawling through the ventilation system towards the lab. _

"Nice try, Barton," Tony laughed. "Jarvis please show Clint his way out of the vents, if you know what I mean."

_Right away sir. Opening bottoms of all vents. _Tony couldn't deny that he enjoyed the startled yelp and following _thump _as the archer tumbled from the vents onto the floor outside the lab.

"Dammit Stark!"

**~Thor's attempt~**

It was really quite sad that Tony found himself actually _waiting _for the next teammate to come knocking on his door. So, Tony was not surprised when Thor knocked (pounded) on the door. Tony sighed and looked down at the now pink piece of metal in front of him. He had a deadline to meet! Didn't anyone get that?

"Ho! Tony Stark! I wish to speak with you!" Tony was about to tell Thor to go away when an evil plan entered his head. Tony quickly opened all the complex files and schematics to his project.

"Jarvis, let Thor in."

_If you say so, sir. _The door opened to reveal a surprised Thor.

"Hey there Thor! Come on in!" Thor walked in slowly. His surprise was evident. Thor must have heard from the rest of team how little luck they had with Tony.

"What are you working on, Man of Iron?" Thor asked.

"Come in and look!" Tony exclaimed. He grabbed Thor's arm and led him to the computer. The screen was filled with numbers, letters, and graphs.

"Uh, thank you. Mind if examine your project?"

"Of course not! Here's all the information!" Tony implored. Thor looked at the information for a long moment.

"... This is very interesting," Thor murmured.

"I know, isn't it?" Tony agreed brightly. Thor stared again at the data, trying to understand any of it. "Problem?" Tony asked easily.

"N-no not at all Tony Stark. T-thank you for letting me see this..."

"My pleasure, my pleasure! Would you like to see it anymore?" Tony asked.

"No thank you. I appreciate it," Thor muttered as he left the lab. Tony watched him go with a smile.

"I hope he found his visit useful," Tony said to himself as he trotted back to his work bench.

**~Bruce's success~**

Bruce walked into the living room of Stark Mansion to find his teammates (excluding Tony again) sitting on the couches, their shoulders slumped. Bruce smiled slightly. "I take it no one had much success with Tony?"

"Not a bit..." Clint grumbled, rubbing where his arm had hit the ground when he'd fallen from the vents. "I'd try again but I still have to find a present for Pepper!" Natasha rolled her eyes.

"You know her birthday is tomorrow, correct?"

"Don't remind me.." sighed Clint.

"I guess that makes it my turn, then," Bruce smiled. He turned and headed towards the lab.

When Bruce arrived at the metal door, he didn't knock. He typed in his access code and the door slided open. Tony looked up at him with mild amusement.

"Took you long enough. I've been waiting for you!" Tony complained.

"Need some help finishing up Pepper's present, I take it?" Bruce asked gently. Tony shrugged.

"That would be nice. Here's the plans," Tony told Bruce. Bruce examined them thoughtfully.

"Good idea. I'll finish up the lines of code, you finish the welding?"

"Sounds like a plan," Tony agreed. The two scientists set to work. After awhile, Tony broke the silence. "When did you figure my plan out?"

"Immediately. Honestly, you're really only dedicate this much of your time to things that involve Pepper."

"Ha, fair enough."

Two hours later, Tony grinned down at his masterpiece. "Well, it's finally done. Thanks again, Bruce."

"No problem Tony. We'd better get to sleep. It's late." Tony yawned loudly.

"I guess you're right."

**~The secret is _finally _revealed~**

Pepper walked into the kitchen and found it covered with streamers and balloons.

"SURPRISE!" the Avengers yelled when they saw her. Pepper jumped, then smiled widely.

"Come over here and open your presents," Steve told the red head. Each Avenger held out their own brightly colored box.

"Thank you everyone. It means so much to me. If only Tony-," Pepper stopped short when she saw her boyfriend grinning at her from where he was standing by the fridge.

"If only Tony could be anymore sexy?" Tony asked. "Know know Pepper, we all know that isn't possible." Pepper stared at him. "Come on Peps! Don't look so surprised." He held out his own neatly wrapped box. "I don't suppose you want to open mine first?"

"Your present... and your project... are the same?" Pepper asked slowly. The occupants of the room watched in silence, allowing the couple to have their moment.

"You bet they're the same! What else would be so important to me?" Tony asked. Peppers face slowly transformed into a true smile, and her eyes filled with love.

"You big sap..." Pepper whispered as she took his present. She slowly unwrapped it and stared at what was inside. It was a pale pink watch with a small screen instead of a clock.

"Touch the screen," Tony whispered. Pepper obeyed and pressed her slim finger the screen. Instantly, a projection shot from the screen. The projection showed a list of items. Pepper looked at them in wonder.

"What is this?" she wondered. Tony grinned.

"It's filled with a bunch of things you may need. Some are for protection, like a few guns, and others are more simple, like a makeup kit. You simply press what you want, and it'll appear."

"How is that even possible?" Pepper asked quietly, slowly scrolling through the long list of items.

"Oh you know... Very complicated, boring science stuff. Bruce helped," Tony said easily. Pepper turned to Bruce and smiled.

"Naturally," Pepper said.

"Naturally," Tony agreed. He reached forward and started quicly scrolling through the list, as if he practiced it many times. "But, there's one item that's my favorite on here." Tony found what he was looking for. Pepper looked at the screen curiosly. The item was simply listed as _Gift. _Tony pressed. The screen flashed once. Tony held out his hand as the watch shot a small light at his palm. Before everyone's eyes, a beatiful necklace appeared in Tony's hand. It was a woven gold chain with a large, heart shapped sapphire in the middle. Pepper stared at it in wonder. Tony picked it up with both hands and carfully clasped it around Pepper's neck.

"Thank you Tony. Thank you so much! I'm sorry I doubted you," Pepper told he boyfriend. Tony grinned his cocky grin and kissed Pepper.

"No problem Peps. Never a problem."

It was probably the best birthday Pepper even had.

* * *

_So i'm honestly surprised I finished that. I'm happy with, though, which is nice. I hope everyone understood what was going on. If you don't just PM me and I'll try and explain it._

_Anyway, I have a sort of request. I have to ideas for the next chapter, and you guys can choose which you'd rather have written:_

_1. Nurturing: In which Tony babysits Peppers niece, who may or may not have some special... abilities_

_2. Playful: In which the Avengers go out and play some extreme laser tag._

_Leave a comment what you think, and thanks again for reading!_

_~wolfe13_


End file.
